Reprieve
by Zura
Summary: A short additional scene immediately following Neytiri reviving Jake in Site 26 after the battle with the sky people. First in the "Skyward" series.


Reprieve

In the daylight they rest for a moment. Close by Jake Sully could still hear the sound of burning machinery and screeching ikran from the battle that had just ended. He could also faintly smell the wreckage of the Colonel's flagship through the exopack but the filter made it difficult. In the end it didn't matter much. As a human his senses paled in comparison to that of his avatar.

Eyesight, tactile sensation, hearing all suffered in this body. The olfactory loss was the worst of it. Even without the exopack on and the ability to breathe Pandoran air there was so much his human nose would miss. In his avatar he could pick up the scent of animals that had passed hours or even days ago. To be limited in his form now was akin to wearing a stifling, sound proof helmet.

Struggling to sit up on his own Jake was still supported by Neytiri's strong, calloused hands. She'd been quiet, studying him in the body that was given to him when he was born the first time. Her eyes were the same as he'd seen a million times before but now they were much larger than what he was used to. It was funny that in his mind he thought of her as strong, light and lithe but always smaller. Face to face he was as tiny as a Na'vi child. Despite the current situation he admired the wavy patterns of her amber irises.

"You're staring Jake..." she pointed out.

"Oh. Yeah. Sorry." He apologized without remorse. "I should get up."

She began to move forward to retrieve his chair but he put a hand on her shoulder. "I'll get it." he said sternly. "I've done this plenty of times."

Dragging himself backward Jake push the chair into the corner of the small bunker. Sliding along the floor until his back was at the chair's footrest he hefted his weight onto them. Pinning the chair against the wall with his body he pushed up with one arm and pulled against the back of the chair with the other. Working himself up he managed to get into the chair with no assistance.

Pulling his unfeeling legs up onto the foot rest he stopped a moment and breathed hard from the exertion. He felt her eyes upon him and kept his head down while gaining back his breath. Even after all this time his disability frustrated his otherwise strong mind. Bearing it in private was one thing but her never, ever wanted Neytiri to see him like this.

"_Peu si nga fpìl_?" What is it you think?

"So much has happened today. So much and all I can think of is how much I don't want you to see my...weakness." he admitted.

Coming over she sat down in front of him cross legged. Even then he still had to look up at her. "Do you love me Myjake?" she asked.

"_Srane_." he answered. Yes.

"Would you if I was human?"

"_Srane_, Neytiri."

"What difference do you see?" she asked plainly.

"I can't run in the forest with you. I can't jump through the trees, swim in the rivers. My own _ikran_ would attack me."

"Did Jake not lead the clans? Did _taruk mak tau_ not call them?"

He smiled thinly said, "I'm Jake. That," he said while jerking his thumb towards the window, "is _taruk mak tau _lying on the ground out there."

She shook her head. "That is a shell, an empty bed. It is you who lies in it."

"All the same, I'd rather be there then here. Let me link up."

Neytiri made a disagreeable clicking sound and stood up as much as the bunker would allow. "_Za'u. Za'u wrrpa_." Come. Come outside.

"I have to-" he began to protest.

"As you are." she instructed. He'd spent so much time in the forest it hadn't occurred to him that he'd never been in it without the use of his avatar. Reluctantly he allowed her to bring him out of Site 26's airlock. It seemed a little silly to even have one given the large hole in it but the damage could be repaired.

Slowly rolling out onto the soft ground he sighed at the sights. Neytiri left his side to say a prayer for her fallen palulukan. Not far Colonel Quaritch's AMP suit lay sprawled out on the forest bed. Though his body wasn't visible the great arrows hammered into it stood like headstones in the air. It was an oddly poignant image and one that would later haunt Jake for its symbolism.

His eyes drifted over to his avatar stretched in the sun dappled underbrush. It was there he felt he truly belonged, not because of its legs but because he felt more Na'vi than anything. Here, nearly forty trillion kilometers from where he had taken his first breath, is where he knew he truly belonged. He dwelt on this as Neytiri returned to his side.

"You look of darkening clouds." she said in a sing song way. "Is your body so painful to you?"

"You don't know what its like." he answered without taking his eyes off his avatar.

"It carried you from the stars all the way to me, did it not?" she asked.

"I guess." he grumbled.

"Let us make a trip. Just you and I. Away from this place." she suggested.

He turned to head back inside the bunker but she suddenly crouched down to his side. "As you are." she whispered. Jake opened his mouth to protest but something in her eyes made him stop.

"At least drag me back into the bunker." he relented. She dutifully obeyed while he studied the ground to look for the least obstacle strewn path. When Neytiri returned she surprised him by lifting him easily out of the chair. Like a swift wind she bore him away from Site 26 and the wreckage deeper into the forest. At last deciding to settle near a small brook she laid him gently down in a patch of soft grass.

Though it was giant grass by Earth standards he was content to be in it. The scent was as familiar and comforting as anywhere else he'd ever rested on Pandora. Neytiri laid down beside him and Jake pulled himself up onto her chest. Laying there they did not speak for some time. No words were necessary.

Running her fingers through his hair she moved down to his arm and held it up. "_Peu fì'u_?" What is this?

"Oh it's a uh...well on Earth its called a tattoo."

"Taa-tuu." she imitated.

"Tattoo."

"Tattu."

"A uh...well...see some Earth warriors invented them a long time ago. It was uh...like a badge of honor. Like war paint, only put into the skin."

"All your warriors have these?" she asked lazily.

"Uh...well...no." Jake tried to explain as he looked up into the blazing canopy. "For a Marine they're kind of standard issue. Um...but regular people get them too."

Silence lapsed again and Jake did not bother trying to keep track of how long they were there. He knew everyone would be looking for them. There would be more clansmen arriving every day and he would have to make plans for them all. He didn't even know if Norm was still alive, probably not. Everyone he knew had gone to be with Eywa. All, mercifully, except Neytiri. Jake fidgeted unconsciously and it was not lost on his mate where his thoughts were likely drifting.

Wordlessly she moved out from under him. Lying on her side she pulled his body up along herself and closed in around him tenderly. He tried to position the exopack where it wouldn't be nuisance but it was an obstacle and a constant reminder of its necessity.

"I want to do it." he blurted out.

"_Si peu_?"

"Pass through the Eye of Eywa."

"Are you sure?" she whispered in his ear.

"Yeah. What have I got to lose? We have the sky people on the run. We won't have to fight much longer. Even if it doesn't work, I'll be with Eywa. And eventually, you will too."

"I do not wish for our time to be cut so short." she said.

"Me either. But its better than this."

"Is this so bad?"

"Nnneh. _Fì'u sìltsan_. But there's just one problem." he answered.

"Hm..." she nuzzled.

"You're not supposed to be taller than me."

She laughed and the sound made him happy. He felt the reverberations in her ribcage and closed his eyes for a moment with the smooth motion. It had been a long, long day and easily the hardest battle of his life. Drowsiness threatened to overcome him.

"We should get back." he yawned. "There's so much we have to do still."

"You're right." she purred. "We should."

Somewhere in the distance an ikranay called out. The grass was inviting, the brook ran playfully by, the sun was warm and Neytiri was all of these things. She was also not going anywhere anytime soon. Jake decided that he'd struggled enough for one day. He wouldn't fight this time.

"Hold a little tighter." he said. "_Taruk mak tau _commands it."

She joyfully complied. As Jake drifted off into sleep he thought of his brother. Tommy would be proud he knew. At that moment, Jake was finally proud of himself as well. He fell fast asleep without worry for the first time in a long time.

Neytiri listened to his shallow breathing, by Na'vi standards. Though he smelled like any other human the scent of the forest clung to his every pore. It was not altogether unpleasant. She decided to pass the time by thinking of baby names.


End file.
